OOF™ Origin Open Foundation™

Independent Methodological Authority

Architecture Ecosystem: Structured Reality Standards™
Architecture Family: SIMULOS® — Simulation Governance Architecture
Parent Standard: Simulation Model & Environment Standard (SMES)
Operational Layer: Simulation Model & Environment Governance Layer
Category: Governance & Enforcement
Subcategory: Simulation Governance
Type: Parent Standard Module
Governed Space: Simulation Environment Versioning
Version: 1.0
Status: Canonical · Open Module
Effective Date: 17 August 2026
Compatibility: OOF® Methodology OS™ · GOA™ · ORA™ · VALIDOS® · INTEGROS® · ADIT® · AGA™ ·
AIG® · CLIA® · MGIA™ · ASGA™ · RIS™
AI-Readable: Yes
Authority: OOF®
Protection: MIP® — Methodological Intellectual Property
Canonical Language: English (UCL™)

Governed Space

Simulation Environment Versioning

Canonical Definition

Simulation Environment Versioning Module (SEVM) defines the governance
framework for identifying, establishing, distinguishing, freezing, changing,
comparing, preserving, restoring, and reconstructing the versions and
materially relevant configuration states of a governed Simulation Environment.

SEVM establishes the version-control layer through which simulation executions
remain bound to the exact environmental configuration under which they
occurred, preventing materially different Simulation Environments from being
treated as if they were the same simulation context.

Operational Role

SEVM is the fifth and final internal governance space of the Simulation Model
& Environment Standard (SMES).

The preceding modules establish:

SMMM — What is the Simulation Model structurally composed of?

SECM — Within what configured Simulation Environment does that model operate?

SBIM — How do the model, environment, and connected domains interact across
their boundaries?

SPHM — Which controlled parameters configure the model and environment for
simulation activity?

SEVM asks:

Which exact version of the Simulation Environment existed for a particular
simulation execution, what changed between environment versions, and can the
environment state relevant to that execution later be reconstructed?

The governed progression is:

Model Structure → Environment Configuration → Boundary Interaction →
Parameterization → Environment Version Identification → Version Baseline →
Change Control → Execution Binding → Version Reconstruction → Governed
Simulation Environment Version

Module Operational Space

SEVM governs: Simulation Environment version identity, environment version
identifiers, environment configuration states, environment baselines,
environment snapshots, version composition, version lineage, version ancestry,
version succession, version differentiation, version equivalence, version
compatibility, version activation, version deactivation, version supersession,
version freezing, version restoration, version rollback, environment forks,
environment branches, environment merges, environment change, material change
classification, environment configuration drift, dependency version change,
boundary configuration change, parameter configuration change references,
environment release states, execution-to-version binding, output-to-version
traceability, version comparability, historical environment preservation,
point-in-time environment reconstruction, and environment-version lifecycle
continuity.

Module Operational Scope

SEVM applies wherever a change in the Simulation Environment may materially
alter simulation behavior, execution conditions, comparability, repeatability,
interpretation, or resulting Simulation Outputs.

It may apply across: engineering simulations, robotics simulations,
autonomous-system simulations, AI simulations, digital twins, scientific
simulations, industrial simulations, infrastructure simulations,
transportation simulations, aerospace simulations, mission simulations,
financial simulations, environmental simulations, cyber-physical simulations,
multi-agent simulations, distributed simulations, federated simulations,
software-in-the-loop environments, hardware-in-the-loop environments,
cloud-based simulation platforms, live-system-connected simulations, and
future simulation environments.

Governance depth should remain proportional to the material effect environment
change may have upon the simulation inquiry.

Module Function

A simulation environment is rarely static.

Software changes.

Libraries change.

Dependencies change.

External services change.

Hardware changes.

Boundary configurations change.

Environmental assets change.

Parameter baselines change.

Models connected to the environment change.

If these changes are not version-governed, two executions may appear to use
the same simulation while actually operating under materially different
conditions.

SEVM exists to prevent: unidentified environment versions, silent environment
updates, loss of historical configurations, execution against unknown
environment states, uncontrolled dependency changes, environment drift,
inappropriate comparison across materially different versions, loss of
reproducibility, ambiguous rollback, and inability to reconstruct the
environment that produced a simulation result.

Simulation Environment Version

A Simulation Environment Version is an identifiable governed state of the
Simulation Environment representing a materially distinguishable configuration
applicable during a defined simulation context.

Conceptually:

Simulation Environment + Governed Configuration State + Version Identity =
Simulation Environment Version Version Identity

Each materially relevant Simulation Environment Version should be
distinguishable.

A Version Identity may include: Environment Identifier, Version Identifier,
configuration reference, release identifier, activation date, dependency
state, parameter baseline reference, boundary configuration reference, and
applicable model compatibility.

Version Identifier

A Version Identifier provides a persistent reference to a specific governed
environment state.

For example:

SEV-1.0

SEV-1.1

SEV-2.0

The numbering mechanism may differ by implementation.

The governance requirement is not a particular numbering convention.

The requirement is:

materially distinguishable environment states must remain distinguishable.

Environment Version Composition

A Simulation Environment Version may be composed of multiple governed
components.

Conceptually:

Environment Version = Environment Configuration + Dependencies + Boundary
Configuration + Parameter Baseline + Relevant Runtime State

Where these components have independent versions, their relationships should
remain traceable.

Composite Version Identity

Complex Simulation Environments may require a Composite Version Identity.

For example:

Environment Version 4.2

may consist of:

Simulation Engine 7.1

Physics Library 3.4

Sensor Package 2.8

Weather Model 5.0

Boundary Configuration B12

Parameter Baseline P17

The composite relationship should remain reconstructable where material.

Environment Baseline

An Environment Baseline establishes an approved reference state of the
Simulation Environment.

The baseline provides a controlled point against which subsequent change may
be evaluated.

Conceptually:

Baseline Environment → Change → Successor Environment Version Baseline Content

A material Environment Baseline may identify: environment structure, software
components, dependency versions, relevant hardware, environmental assets,
interfaces, boundary configurations, parameter references, runtime
configuration, external service dependencies, and other materially relevant
environment properties.

Baseline ≠ Permanent Environment

A baseline is a governed reference state.

It does not prohibit change.

It makes change visible.

Environment Snapshot

An Environment Snapshot captures the materially relevant environment state at
a defined point in time or execution context.

Snapshots may support: forensic reconstruction, repeatability, rollback,
comparison, incident analysis, and execution traceability.

Snapshot ≠ Version

A snapshot records a state.

A version represents a governed environment identity.

Multiple snapshots may exist within one version where transient runtime state
differs without constituting a new governed version.

Version Lineage

SEVM should preserve the lineage between environment versions.

Conceptually:

Version 1.0 → Version 1.1 → Version 1.2 →
Version 2.0

Lineage allows later determination of: predecessor, successor, change path,
branching, rollback, and historical dependency.

Version Ancestry

Where environments are derived from earlier configurations, ancestry should
remain visible.

For example:

Environment B v1.0 derived from
Environment A v3.2

This may be important where assumptions, dependencies, or configuration
defects propagate between versions.

Environment Version Change

An Environment Version Change occurs when a materially relevant property of
the governed Simulation Environment changes.

Possible changes include: simulation engine update, dependency update, library
update, hardware replacement, environment asset change, boundary configuration
change, external service change, parameter baseline change, timing-system
change, synchronization change, network configuration change, or runtime
architecture change.

Material Version Change

Not every technical modification requires a new governed environment version.

The governing question is:

Could the change materially affect simulation behavior, execution conditions,
repeatability, comparability, interpretation, or reconstruction?

If yes, the change should be visible to environment-version governance.

Version Change Classification

Environment changes may be classified as:

Non-Material

Minor

Material

Major

Critical

or another implementation-specific classification.

Classification should reflect simulation consequence rather than
software-release terminology alone.

No Silent Version Change Principle

A materially changed Simulation Environment must not continue to be
represented as the same governed environment version merely because the
technical system retained the same name or deployment location.

Version Differentiation

Two environment states should be considered materially different where their
differences can materially alter simulation behavior or interpretation.

Version differentiation may depend upon: changed dependencies, changed
interaction behavior, changed parameterization, changed timing, changed
physical components, changed external services, changed environmental assets,
or changed runtime conditions.

Version Equivalence

Two technical environment instances may be treated as version-equivalent only
where their materially relevant configuration states are sufficiently
equivalent for the simulation inquiry.

Technical duplication does not automatically establish governance equivalence.

Environment Compatibility

A Simulation Environment Version may be compatible only with certain:
Simulation Model versions, parameter configurations, boundary configurations,
scenario structures, execution engines, hardware, or dependencies.

Compatibility should remain identifiable where incompatibility could
materially alter execution. Model–Environment Version Compatibility

A Simulation Model Version should not be assumed compatible with every
Simulation Environment Version.

Conceptually:

Model Version + Environment Version →
Compatibility Status

Possible statuses may include:

Compatible

Conditionally Compatible

Incompatible

Compatibility Undetermined Dependency
Versioning

A Simulation Environment may rely upon external or internal dependencies.

Examples include: software libraries, physics engines, databases, AI models,
APIs, external services, hardware firmware, operating systems, middleware, or
communication infrastructure.

Material dependency versions should remain identifiable.

Dependency Change

A dependency change may create a new environment state even where the primary
Simulation Environment software remains unchanged.

For example:

Same Simulation Platform + New Physics Engine = Potentially Different
Simulation Environment External Service Version Change

External services may change outside direct simulation control.

Where such change materially affects simulation behavior, the affected
environment state should not remain invisible.

SEVM may preserve:

External Service Identity → Previous State → Changed State → Affected
Environment Version Boundary Configuration Version Relationship

SBIM governs Simulation Boundary Interaction.

SEVM preserves which governed boundary configuration applied to a particular
Simulation Environment Version.

Conceptually:

Environment Version → Boundary
Configuration Reference

A material boundary change may therefore require environment-version
reassessment.

Parameter Configuration Version
Relationship

SPHM governs Simulation Parameterization.

SEVM preserves the applicable Parameter Baseline or configuration relationship
where it forms part of the environment version.

Conceptually:

Environment Version → Parameter Baseline
Reference

Not every parameter change requires a new Environment Version.

But a material baseline-level configuration change may.

Version Activation

A Simulation Environment Version should have an identifiable activation point
where necessary.

This allows determination of which version was operational for a specific
simulation execution.

Version Deactivation

When an environment version is no longer approved for new execution, its
deactivation should remain distinguishable from deletion.

Historical versions may still be required for reconstruction.

Version Supersession

A new environment version may supersede a prior version.

Conceptually:

SEV-1.0 → Superseded by → SEV-1.1

Supersession does not erase the historical environment state.

Version Freeze

A Version Freeze prevents material changes to an environment configuration
during a defined simulation campaign, controlled comparison, benchmark,
investigation, or validation activity.

The purpose is to maintain stable execution conditions.

Frozen Environment Principle

A frozen Simulation Environment Version must not materially change during the
governed freeze period without creating an explicit exception or successor
version.

Environment Release State

An environment version may hold a governed release state such as:

Draft

Test

Approved

Active

Frozen

Deprecated

Superseded

Archived

or another implementation-specific state.

Release state should not be confused with validation status. Environment
Version ≠ Validation State

SEVM identifies and governs Simulation Environment Versions.

VALIDOS® governs validation conclusions and Validation States.

Therefore:

Environment Version 3.0

does not mean:

Validated Environment Version 3.0

unless a separate validation process establishes that state.

Environment Version Fork

A Version Fork occurs when one governed environment state develops into
multiple successor configurations.

For example:

Environment 2.0

↓

Environment 2.1-A

and

Environment 2.1-B

Forks should preserve common ancestry.

Environment Branch

Branches may support: experimental environments, alternative configurations,
hardware variants, regional configurations, different scenario families, or
research variants.

A branch should not silently replace the primary environment baseline.

Environment Merge

Where branches are recombined, the resulting environment should identify the
material configuration inherited from each branch.

Merge complexity should not destroy version traceability.

Environment Rollback

A Rollback restores a previous governed environment configuration.

Rollback should identify: current version, target version, reason, affected
executions, activation point, and any retained changes.

Rollback ≠ Erasure

A rollback does not erase the intervening version history.

Conceptually:

V1 → V2 → Rollback to V1-derived state

should preserve the existence and use of V2.

Environment Restoration

Restoration may reconstruct a historical environment for: repeat execution,
forensic analysis, validation, comparison, or incident investigation.

The restored environment should remain distinguishable from the historical
original where differences remain.

Restoration Fidelity

A restored environment may be:

Exact

Functionally Equivalent

Partially Reconstructed

or:

Reconstruction Uncertain

depending upon what can actually be restored.

This distinction should remain explicit.

Environment Configuration Drift

Environment Configuration Drift occurs where the actual Simulation Environment
progressively departs from its governed version or baseline without
corresponding version governance.

Examples include: silent dependency updates, changed runtime settings,
modified hardware, external service changes, unrecorded configuration changes,
parameter baseline changes, or altered boundary behavior.

Drift Detection

SEVM should support detection of material divergence between:

Declared Environment Version

and:

Actual Environment State Declared–Actual
Version Consistency

A simulation execution should not claim:

Environment Version X

when the actual materially relevant environment state no longer corresponds to
Version X.

Version Integrity Interface

SEVM does not own general integrity governance.

Where preservation, tamper resistance, authenticity, or record integrity
requires dedicated controls, INTEGROS® may apply.

SEVM governs:

which version existed and what it contained.

INTEGROS® may govern:

whether the relevant version records and artifacts preserved their required
integrity.

Execution-to-Version Binding

Every material Simulation Execution should be bindable to the Simulation
Environment Version under which it occurred.

Conceptually:

Simulation Execution ID → Simulation
Environment Version ID

This relationship is fundamental to repeatability and interpretation.

Execution Environment Record

An execution record may preserve: Execution Identifier, Environment Version
Identifier, Model Version reference, Parameter Configuration reference,
Boundary Configuration reference, dependency state, execution time, and
relevant environment snapshot.

No Unbound Execution Principle

A material Simulation Execution should not produce governable Simulation
Output without an identifiable relationship to the Simulation Environment
Version under which that execution occurred.

Output-to-Version Traceability

Downstream Simulation Output should remain traceable to the environment
version that contributed to its production.

Conceptually:

Environment Version → Simulation Execution
→ Simulation Output

SEVM establishes the environment-version side of this chain.

Version Comparability

Two simulation executions should not be assumed comparable merely because they
used the same Simulation Model.

Their environment versions may differ.

SEVM therefore asks:

Are the materially relevant environment conditions sufficiently equivalent for
the intended comparison?

Version Comparison

A Version Comparison may identify: common components, changed components,
changed dependencies, changed boundaries, changed parameter baselines, changed
runtime conditions, and expected behavioral consequences.

Comparability Status

Possible statuses may include:

Environment-Comparable

Conditionally Environment-Comparable

Partially Environment-Comparable

Not Environment-Comparable

or:

Environment Comparability Undetermined
Version Delta

A Version Delta represents the material differences between two Simulation
Environment Versions.

Conceptually:

Version B − Version A = Environment
Version Delta

The delta may identify: added components, removed components, updated
components, dependency changes, boundary changes, parameter baseline changes,
runtime changes, and configuration changes.

Version Delta Propagation

A material Environment Version Delta may affect later SIMULOS® governance
spaces.

Conceptually:

Environment Version Change

↓

Input / Scenario Conditions

↓

Simulation Execution

↓

Simulation Output

↓

Reality Correlation

↓

Simulation Evidence

SEVM preserves the version change.

Downstream Parent Standards govern their respective consequences.

Environment Version Continuity

SEVM should preserve the lifecycle:

Environment Creation → Baseline → Active Version → Change → Successor Version
→ Supersession / Branch / Rollback → Archive

This allows the environment to remain governable across repeated simulation
activity.

Historical Environment Preservation

Historical environment versions may be necessary to answer:

Which environment produced this result?

What changed afterward?

Could the execution be repeated?

Did a later environment update alter behavior?

Was the relevant defect present at the time of execution?

Point-in-Time Environment State

SEVM should support determination of the environment state applicable at a
specific point in time.

This is particularly important for: incident reconstruction, scientific
reproducibility, regulatory review, certification support, validation, dispute
resolution, and audit.

Point-in-Time Reconstruction

A Point-in-Time Reconstruction should establish, where possible:

Environment Identity

Environment Version

Configuration State

Dependencies

Boundary Configuration

Parameter Baseline

Runtime State

and:

Execution Relationship

for the relevant time.

Environment Version Reconstruction

SEVM should enable reconstruction sufficient to answer:

Which environment version was active?

What did that version contain?

Which dependencies were present?

Which boundary configuration applied?

Which parameter baseline applied?

What changed from the previous version?

Was the version frozen, active, deprecated, or superseded?

Which executions used it?

Can the relevant state be restored?

Version Traceability

A complete version traceability path may be represented as:

Simulation Environment

↓

Environment Baseline

↓

Environment Version

↓

Environment Configuration

↓

Dependency State

↓

Boundary Configuration

↓

Parameter Baseline

↓

Simulation Execution

↓

Simulation Output

Minimum Implementation Framework

1. Identify the Simulation Environment

Establish the governed environment whose versions require control. 2.
Establish Environment Version Identity

Assign distinguishable version references to materially different environment
states. 3. Establish the Environment Baseline

Define the controlled reference configuration. 4. Capture Material Version
Composition

Preserve materially relevant components, dependencies, boundaries, and
parameter references. 5. Govern Environment Change

Determine whether changes require a successor version or other governed
treatment. 6. Preserve Version Lineage

Maintain predecessor, successor, branch, merge, rollback, and ancestry
relationships. 7. Control Activation, Freeze, Supersession, and Restoration

Ensure environment lifecycle states remain explicit. 8. Detect Material
Configuration Drift

Identify divergence between the declared version and actual environment state.
9. Bind Simulation Execution to Environment Version

Preserve the exact environment-version relationship for material executions.
10. Preserve Historical Reconstruction

Maintain sufficient information to compare, restore, and reconstruct
materially relevant environment states.

Governance Outputs

SEVM may produce: Simulation Environment Version Identifier, Environment
Version Record, Environment Baseline, Environment Snapshot, Environment
Version Composition Record, Composite Version Identity, Version Lineage
Record, Version Ancestry Record, Environment Version Change Record, Material
Change Classification, Environment Version Delta, Environment Version
Comparison, Environment Comparability Status, Model–Environment Compatibility
Record, Dependency Version Record, External Service Version Record, Boundary
Configuration Version Reference, Parameter Baseline Version Reference,
Environment Activation Record, Environment Deactivation Record, Version
Supersession Record, Version Freeze Record, Environment Release State,
Environment Fork Record, Environment Branch Record, Environment Merge Record,
Environment Rollback Record, Environment Restoration Record, Restoration
Fidelity Record, Environment Configuration Drift Record, Declared–Actual
Version Consistency Record, Execution Environment Record, Execution-to-Version
Binding, Output-to-Version Traceability Reference, Point-in-Time Environment
State, Environment Version Reconstruction Record, Historical Environment
Record, and Simulation Environment Version Traceability Map.

Use Case 1 — Autonomous Vehicle Simulation
Platform

Scenario

An autonomous vehicle simulation is executed using:

Environment Version 4.2

containing a defined physics engine, road environment, sensor emulation
system, weather model, dependency set, boundary configuration, and parameter
baseline.

The physics engine is later updated.
Application

SEVM evaluates the change as material because vehicle behavior may change.

A successor environment becomes:

Environment Version 4.3

rather than silently retaining Version 4.2. Result

Results generated under 4.2 and 4.3 remain distinguishable, and any comparison
can account for the environment change. Use Case 2 — Space Mission Simulation

Scenario

A mission simulation produces a critical navigation result.

Months later, a defect is discovered in a communication-model dependency.
Application

SEVM traces the affected dependency across environment-version lineage and
identifies which executions used the defective version.

The historical environment is
reconstructed. Result

Investigators can determine whether the critical simulation result was
produced under the affected environment rather than rerunning the mission
unknowingly under a corrected configuration. Use Case 3 — Scientific Climate
Simulation

Scenario

A long-running scientific simulation program produces results across several
years.

During that period: libraries change, computational infrastructure changes,
parameter baselines evolve, and external datasets are updated.

Application

SEVM preserves distinct governed Simulation Environment Versions and binds
each execution to its corresponding environment state. Result

Researchers can distinguish scientific differences caused by changed
simulation assumptions or scenarios from differences potentially introduced by
changes in the Simulation Environment itself.

Architectural Position

Simulation Environment Versioning is the fifth and final internal governance
space of the Simulation Model & Environment Standard (SMES).

The complete SMES progression is:

Simulation Model Structure → Simulation Environment Configuration → Simulation
Boundary Interaction → Simulation Parameterization → Simulation Environment
Versioning

Together, the five modules establish:

what the Simulation Model contains,

where it operates,

how it interacts across its boundaries,

how its configurable properties are instantiated,

and:

which exact governed environment version exists for simulation execution.

Within the broader SIMULOS® lifecycle:

Simulation Object → Simulation Purpose & Scope → Reality Representation →
Simulation Assumptions → Simulation Model & Environment → Inputs & Data →
Scenario Design → Simulation Execution → Simulation Output Governance →
Reality Correlation → Simulation Evidence → Validation Interface → Operational
Reliance → Drift / Resimulation / Retirement

SEVM closes the Simulation Model & Environment governance space and
establishes the controlled versioned configuration required before the
architecture proceeds into simulation inputs, data, scenarios, and execution.

Foundational Principle

A simulation result cannot be fully reconstructed or meaningfully compared
unless the materially relevant Simulation Environment Version that produced it
remains identifiable.

Canonical Closing Statement

Simulation Environment Versioning Module completes the Simulation Model &
Environment Standard by establishing the governed version-control layer
through which materially distinct Simulation Environment states remain
identifiable across simulation activity. Through environment baselines,
version identity, composition, dependency tracking, lineage, change
classification, compatibility, activation, freezing, branching, rollback,
drift detection, execution binding, comparability, historical preservation,
and point-in-time reconstruction, SEVM ensures that changes to the environment
cannot silently alter simulation behavior while historical and current
executions continue to be represented as if they occurred under the same
governed simulation conditions.